North Korea has proposed holding talks to discuss replacing the Korean War armistice with a peace treaty.

The North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Monday that the North's Foreign Ministry issued a statement proposing such talks among parties to the armistice agreement.

The ministry suggested in the statement that the parties could hold an independent meeting for a peace treaty, as mentioned in the September 19th, 2005 Joint Statement, or that the meeting could be held within the framework of the six-party nuclear talks, as in the form of the ongoing talks between Pyongyang and Washington.

The ministry also said that the North could return to the six-party talks soon if sanctions against the North are lifted, urging armistice signatories to make a decision for peace, security and the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

The ministry said that it was authorized to issue the statement, hinting that it was either the decision of the North's National Defense Commission or North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.